The Sweetheart & The Lost Boy
by SophieEmerson87
Summary: Sophie Emerson and her two brothers have just moved to Santa Carla to live with their grandfather due to their recently divorced mother. She, unlike her brothers, is kind at heart, only wanting the best for everyone around her. How will she fair against the charm of the tall, dark and handsome Lost Boy Dwayne? What are the odds David would choose her for Laddie's first kill?
1. Prologue

"It hurts," Laddie whimpered, holding his stomach, "Star, it hurts, make it stop!" He cried and Star could only look at him with pain in her eyes. "Laddie, I'm so sorry," she whispered, holding him close. He had only been turned for a few weeks, but he was younger, so his hunger would be more potent. She hadn't experienced the pain of not feeding until nearly three months of holding back, and each day it became increasingly harder. But she stayed strong, for her humanity and for Laddie's as well.

"He'll have to feed eventually, Star." David's voice rang from the entrance to the cave, flanked by Marko to his left and Paul to his right, Dwayne lingering behind as they entered. "And I know it's not very appealing to you, but sweetheart, you do too." He added, plopping down in his usual chair in the center of the room. Paul and Marko walked around with a torch, lighting the room up with trash bins in place of candles.

Dwayne walked over to Laddie. He looked to him as a brother, and he hated seeing someone so young going through so much pain. He knew that pain, he could sympathize with him, everyone could. Star tightened her grip around Laddie, a fair warning to Dwayne to step off. But that didn't stop him from trying to comfort his companion, his little brother.

"How you hangin' in, bud?" Dwayne asked, wiping a few tears from the young boy's face. Laddie sniffled, "D-Dwayne, it h-hurts so bad..." He hiccuped, pulling himself from Star's grip to launch himself into Dwayne's arms. Dwayne hugged him tight, "I know, little buddy, I know. I'm gonna make sure it'll all stop hurting, ok?" He promised Laddie, and he pulled away to give him a reassuring smile, "cheer up, it'll all be ok." Dwayne stated.

"I thought I told you I didn't want him feeding, David!" Star snapped, "he's too young!" She added and Paul rolled his eyes. "Last I checked, princess, you weren't in charge of his choices." He noted and Star glared. "Forever stuck at the age of eight? That's not a life for anyone!" Star argued and David sighed, standing up. "Star, Star, Star," he huffed, walking over, "he will be forever stuck at the age of eight anyways. But it is his choice as to whether or not it's living in content happiness, or with hunger pains every five minutes for all of eternity."

David stepped closer, only a few inches away. "You may have come to terms with that, Star, but I will not just sit idly by while a young boy is being deprived of what he really needs." He paused, turning to Laddie who was sitting on the couch between Marko and Dwayne. "Laddie, I have a question to ask you."

He walked over to the boy, and sat on top of the ledge in front of him. "I understand that you're hurting, yes?" He asked and Laddie nodded. "I know of something that will make the pain go away. But it won't be very fun... at first." He grinned so wide it rivaled the Cheshire Cat. Laddie winced as another wave of pain hit him hard in the stomach and he yelped, holding his stomach as he nearly doubled over.

"Make it stop! Please!" Laddie all but screamed and Dwayne sighed, rubbing Laddie's back in small circles. David kneeled in front of him, sitting Laddie up to look at him. "Tomorrow night, we will find someone for you to feed from-" Star interjected, jumping forward, "no!" Paul pushed her back, not hard enough to hurt her too bad, but enough for her to stumble backwards into a chair. "I will make the pain stop, Laddie." David told him, ignoring Star's protests.

"I promise."


	2. Chapter 1

"Oh, come on, I liked that one!"

"Next!"

That was the constant, ongoing conversation that filtered throughout the car, all the way from Phoenix to where we were entering now, Santa Carla, California. The boys would pick a station, my mother would keep it there until a song they didn't know or like came on, then they'd tell her to switch it. It wasn't even noon and I was already wanting to cut my face off.

I sighed, "can't you bone-heads pick a station and be happy?" I groaned and Michael rolled his eyes from beside me, while Sam stuck his tongue out at me like he was five. "How much longer until we get there, mom?" I asked, pulling myself to sit up and lean my chin on the front seat. "Not much longer, dear, we should be there in about five minutes." She told me.

I groaned as Nanook leaped into the backseat, landing right on my lap like he was a baby again. "Ow - Nanook, come on! Sam, your dog is too heavy!" I huffed, trying to get the heavy dog off of me. Michael snorted, opening his mouth to say something smart when Sam exclaimed, "mom, I'm hungry!" I rolled my eyes, pushing Nanook into the space between Michael and I, sighing as the feeling came back into my legs.

We passed a sign, saying, 'Welcome to Santa Carla.' I shook my head, running my hands through my long blonde curls. However what was on the back of the sign had definitely caught my attention. In big, bold letters were the words 'Murder Capital of the World' outlined by black. I furrowed my brows, wondering just what kind of town we had moved to.

We stopped at a small snack shack just before the boardwalk, something that would be a huge tourist attraction had this town been more noticeable on a map. There were rides and cotton candy and games, the lot. There were people all around us either in barely anything or too much at all. Some were walking in swimsuits, heading to or from the beach, others were cloaked head to toe in dark clothing - almost as if they wanted to get heat stroke.

We all filed out of the car, my mother handing me some money while she paid for our food. "Go and tell those kids to get something to eat, would you?" She told me and I glanced over to see some kids dumpster diving for food.

I nodded, walking over and pushing my sunglasses up from my face. "Excuse me?" I got their attention, and the girl looked up from a half-rotten sandwich mid-bite. "Here," I handed her the money, "you two should go get something to eat." I said and the boy smiled at me, "bless you, ma'am. Thank you!" He replied, nearly skipping over to the shack with his sister, I presumed.

I walked back over to my mom, who handed me a cup of water, "thank you." I said, downing it in one big drink. It definitely was hotter than Phoenix, but it also was dryer, which I knew I was just going to _love_.Note my sarcasm.

"Sophie!" Michael called, and I snapped my head over to where he stood with his bike. He waved me over and I complied, "mom said you're riding with me." He told me and I scoffed. "On that death-trap of a bike? Hell no! I'd rather take my chances with Nanook!" I retorted and he rolled his eyes, kickstarting his bike, "I can't drive reckless. I'm driving behind mom, now get on." He told me, and I groaned, crumpling up my paper cup and tossing it in the nearest trash bin.

"You better not kill us." I warned him, wrapping my arms around his torso. "No promises," he stated with a shrug before taking off flying behind our mom's car. I squealed, holding on for dear life. I don't know how long it took us, though I was pretty sure my arms were gonna fall off if I squeezed Michael any tighter.

"God, you're such a girl, Soph." Michael mumbled as we got off and I narrowed my eyes, "you know that's kind of funny since, you know, I _am_ in fact a girl. Who would have thought?!" I snarked back, dusting my legs off from all the dust and dirt. Our grandfather's house was... definitely different than I'd expected. I had imagined a small, two bedroom cabin with trees growing everywhere, cobwebs in evey corner, and a whole bunch of taxidermy.

I mean, I wasn't wrong. It was bigger.

We approached the front door, though something stopped us short. It was our grandfather, lying flat on the ground on his back. "Is he ok?" Michael asked, "is he dead?" Sam interjected. I knocked him on the shoulder, "of course he isn't dead!" I scolded and my mom went to his side. "Dad? Dad, wake up." She patted his chest and sighed, she looked up to say something to us, when our grandfather suddenly jumped up and I flinched, nearly screaming at being so startled.

"Playin' dead. And goin' by some of your words," he looked at Sam, "it worked." He laughed, standing up with the help of my mom. We went through the tour, went over the rules of the house, and after about thirty minutes of hearing Sam complain about the lack of a television set, we were sent to our rooms to unpack. Mine wasn't too big, but it was bigger than my other one back in Phoenix.

The wood was a gorgeous mahogany shade, a deep, warm brown that went well with the grey carpeted floors. My bed, dressers, and desk were already in here, so all that was left was to unpack all my stuff and get it where it needed to be. Maybe an hour or so in, Sam came into my room. "Hey, Soph, mom, Michael and I are heading to the boardwalk around seven, are you gonna come?" He asked.

I pondered over it, and soon realized I had nothing better to do. "Yeah, sure."

Thank you so much for reading, hope you enjoyed! -Kari


	3. Chapter 2

When six o'clock rolled around, I jumped in the shower to wash off all the cleaning and unpacking and rearranging. It only took me about fifteen minutes, and I had to make a quick decision as to what I was going to wear. Either long pants and a t-shirt, or a cute shirt and a pair of shorts. I went with the latter, throwing on a pair of black shorts with a brown belt, and my maroon Ramones shirt. I slipped on my beat-up converse, brushing through my long hair until it was knot-free and resting against my back and shoulders.

By the time it was seven, I was already ready to go, slipping downstairs to meet my mom and Michael by the door. "Where's Sam? I thought he was coming." I asked and Michael nodded, "he's waiting in the car."

So, it turned out I had to ride with Michael, yet again on his death machine. By the time we got there, no blow dryer could ever compete. My hair was back in their dry, ringlet curls, and I was mentally scarred. "Do you have to drive so fast?" I huffed once we got there and he parked his bike. "You mean the speed limit? Why yes, yes I do because if I don't I get pulled over, little sister of mine." Michael retorted, pulling me into a headlock and messing up my hair.

I managed to squeeze out, punching him in the shoulder, "hey! Not the hair! We made that agreement when we were little, you keep your hands off, I don't touch your vinyl collection!" I growled and he laughed while I tried to fix the mess he made. My mom pulled up and we walked over to her.

"Mom! He touched my hair!" I pouted and she deadpanned, "Michael, leave your sister alone." She scolded. I swear my mother was the only person who could scold in a sweet voice and not come off creepy. "Now, the three of you need to stick together, do you understand?" She told Sam, Michael and I, we all nodded, "yes, mom." She handed us each some money, "make it last, that's all I have until I get a job, which is what I'm going to go look for right now." And with that, she was off.

Sam sighed, "so what now?" He asked and Michael and I shrugged. "Whatever, I guess." Michael said. I could hear music off in the distance, something that sounded vaguely like Tim Cappello. Either way, it sounded good and I liked it. "I have something for us to do, come on!" I exclaimed, grabbing their wrists and dragging them along the boardwalk towards the sound of the music.

"Where are we going?" Sam asked, "I have no idea!" I called back over the loud music we were approaching, and finally we were met with a stage. Michael and Sam watched them play, probably making snide comments under their breath, while I was tapping my foot to the sound of the music and just listening.

That was, until a small hand tugging on my shirt caught my attention.

I turned around, seeing a little boy no older than eight, tears in his eyes and falling down his cheeks. "Hey, hey, what's the matter?" I asked, leaning down to his height - which sadly wasn't more than a foot or so. "I-I can't find him! My brother, I can't find him!" He exclaimed, breathing hard and I wiped the tears from his face, "it's alright, don't worry I'll help you find him." I promised, taking his hand and standing up straight.

"Michael!" I called over the music, and he snapped his head over. "This little boy lost his brother, I'm gonna go help him find him, ok?" I yelled loud enough for the distance and he nodded, "don't move, I'll be right back!" I added before leading him out of the crowds of drunks and headbangers. Once we were in a safer, less loud environment, I sat him down on a bench, leaning in front of him.

"Ok, what does your brother look like?" I asked, rubbing the back of his hand reassuringly. He went to speak but cut off, more tears running down his face. "Shh, shh, it's ok." I told him, wiping his tear-stained cheeks. "No more crying, ok? We'll find him." I said. He nodded, "h-he's... um... he's tall, with brown hair and eyes... he's kinda tan..." He described and I figured that was enough of a description for me to filter out. Besides, I was sure he would spot him before I did.

"Alright, and what's your name?" I inquired and he sniffled, "Laddie." He said. I smiled, "that's a great name. I like Laddie." I replied, "well, Laddie, I'm Sophie. Now let's go on an adventure to find your brother!" I exclaimed, and I saw that his lips twitched in the corners to a smile. We headed off down the boardwalk, and every guy I saw with the description he gave me I pointed out only for him to tell me it wasn't him.

Eventually we stopped for ice cream, something I thought would lift his spirits, even if it were for a little bit. I didn't know the kid, but I hated seeing him so sad. I could remember countless times I lost my mom in a supermarket, and as soon as I saw her I would practically bolt into her arms. "Dwayne!" Laddie screamed at the top of his lungs, and I jumped, noticing a group of guys on motorcycles turning their heads this way.

"Is that him?" I asked, and Laddie nodded, "yeah, come on!" He encouraged, pulling me along with him rather than letting go of my hand. I barely had enough time to throw my trash away before I was being dragged over there. "Laddie!" One of them called, getting off of his bike as we approached and engulfing Laddie in a huge bear-hug, despite the fact that Laddie was in fact still holding my hand in a tight grip. "Don't you ever leave me like that again, do you hear me?" The guy, Dwayne, scolded lightly and I couldn't help but smile.

"Thanks for returning the little tyke." Another one of the bikers, one with a blonde mullet-thing going on said and I nodded, "it wasn't a problem at all." I shook my head, pushing my bangs out of my face. I didn't really like how his voice sent my skin crawling, but I didn't say anything further.

I couldn't help but focus on Dwayne. He was tall. He had a whole foot over me and then some. He was muscular and had a sharp jaw that could probably cut glass. His hair was long and dark and thick, something you would want to run your fingers through. I shook my head, clearing those thoughts as Laddie let go of Dwayne and barreled into me, hugging me tight around my waist. "Thank you, thank you, thank you, Sophie!" He exclaimed and I giggled.

"It's no problem, feel free to lose your brother and come find me again sometime, ok kid?" I joked, pulling a spare napkin from my pocket. I wiped his mouth and nose, that of which were covered with chocolate ice cream. We bid our goodbyes, Laddie looking rather sad to see me go, and I met back up with Michael and Sam who were well over waiting for me.

But I couldn't help that I was intrigued with Dwayne. He definitely was something else.


	4. Chapter 3

The next day, Michael told me that he was planning on heading back down to the boardwalk tonight, and that our mom wanted me to go with him to make sure that he wasn't going to get into any trouble. He wasn't much of a troublemaker back in Phoenix, and the worst he did was smoke a cigarette or two. I didn't understand just what she was afraid of him doing, but regardless, I had no choice but to go with him.

I figured I could find some part time work on the boardwalk too, so I caved in to my mother's requests. A knock had sounded at my door and I looked up from my book to see it was Michael. "We're leaving around eight, Soph, be ready, ok?" He told me, his face giving no indication that he was any form of happy and I nodded.

Peering over at my clock, I saw it read about seven-ten and I groaned, picking myself up from my bed and dragging myself over to my closet to pick out something to wear. I settled on a white Def Leppard shirt that was cut off at my mid-section, adding a pair of black high-waisted shorts and pairing them with the same worn converse.

I brushed through my hair, pulling it up into a high ponytail, leaving my bangs out. I grabbed my bag, putting in a few pens for filling out applications and some of the money my mother had given me yesterday that I had left over. I slung it over my shoulder and padded my way downstairs and met our mother at the door.

"Be safe you two," she said, giving us both a hug before we filed out the door and hopped on the back of Michael's bike. It had gotten a little easier to ride with him, but when my mother wasn't around it made me nervous, only because he drove a little more recklessly. He took turns too fast, and he never stopped all the way when it came to a stop sign.

"Don't worry," I told him, once we got there and got off the bike. "I'll keep my distance, we can just meet somewhere at a specific time when it's time to go." I told him, keeping my head down as I began to walk away but he caught my arm. "Hey, hey," Michael said with a sigh, "no, I'm actually glad you came, I need some little sister fashion advice anyways." He said, throwing his arm carelessly around my shoulders while we walked down the boardwalk. I couldn't help but grin, because he was right, my brothers would be helpless as far as clothing if they didn't have me.

We walked for a little until he found a small little stand with leather jackets. I raised a brow, "leather, really?" I inquired and he shrugged, "it'd never hurt to try." He mumbled, asking the lady who ran it if he could try a few on. After maybe four of five bad choices, he finally got one on that looked good. It was simple, and a dark, jet black that complimented his blue eyes that I wished I had.

"That's it! That's the one!" I said, excitement clouding over me. I jumped up and down, "you have to get it, Michael, that's perfect." I told him, and he smiled, pulling out a ten from his pocket, the designated price, and handed it to her. "It really is a good choice," the lady said, taking his money and putting it in her pocket. "Thank you," Michael said before we headed off to wherever he was dragging me next.

"Wait, wait, Michael, I'm gonna go see if I can fill out an application." I said, tearing myself from his side and practically skipping to the music shop with a 'Help Wanted' sign in the window. I entered, walking right up to the counter and asking for an application. It took me roughly seven minutes to fill out, with all the usual information on it. When I finished, I turned it in and thanked the kind woman at the counter, Sharon, and exited the store.

But, thanks to my brother getting carried away, I was alone when I stepped outside. Great.

"Wonderful, Michael, you can't even comprehend the word 'wait.'" I grumbled before setting off on a lookout for him. I searched everywhere, up and down the boardwalk, down by the beach, by the rides, in every store, and nothing. Nada. Zip. Finally, thirty minutes had passed by and I still had no sight of him. I sat down on a bench and groaned, resting my face in my hands, my elbows propped up on my knees.

A tap on my shoulder had caused me to look up, and when I did I was met with the face of Laddie. I furrowed my brows, "Laddie, what are you doing here? Did you lose your brother again?" I asked, sitting up straight and he shook his head. "No, did you?" He inquired and I was a little taken aback. I sighed, "kind of." I confessed and he smiled, taking my hands and standing me up. "I know where he is, come on!" Laddie exclaimed, pulling me along with him down the boardwalk.

Well, if that didn't turn the tables. Last night I was helping a little lost boy find his big brother, and now said little lost boy was helping me find mine. I felt like I was in an episode of Twilight Zone, especially since he maneuvered through the crowds like it was nothing, and he seemed like he knew this place like the back of his hand. I was confused, "Laddie, where are we going?" I had asked him multiple times, but he didn't respond, only further lead me through the crowds.

Finally, a few minutes later we were met with the same boys Dwayne was with. I had only just recently noticed that under his leather jacket he wore no shirt. I peeled my eyes away from his torso and up to his face, to which he wore a cocky smirk. And he was looking directly at me - which meant he caught me staring. _Great. Awesome. Stellar job, Sophie._

"Well, well, well, looks like someone couldn't stay away." One had commented, with pale, flawless skin and big, doe-like blue-green eyes. His hair was curly, and longer than any of the others' in the group. "David, she lost her brother." Laddie stated to the one with the mullet, pushing some hair away from his eyes and the one with the Twisted Sister knock-off hairstyle laughed.

"How ironic." David commented, looking to me before his eyes snapped over to my left. I looked over my shoulder, seeing Michael walking with some girl. I felt my hands curl up into a fist, and I looked back to the four boys, "if you'll excuse me." I muttered with as nice of a tone as I could manage before storming over to where Michael stood with the girl by his bike; which he had moved.

It took everything in me not to punch him the minute I was within range. "What the hell, Michael?!" I yelled, pushing him back into his bike. "I told you to wait, that's all I did, it didn't take me ten minutes to fill out that application and you just left me there!" I growled, and Michael rubbed his shoulder where I had pushed him. "Chill out, ok? Star and I just went for a walk. It's not like I left you here alone while I left the boardwalk entirely." He defended.

I turned to the girl next to me, a beautiful, radiant brunette with dark eyes and a slim nose. "Star?" I asked and she nodded, "Sophie, Michael's little sister." I greeted, holding out my hand. She smiled a little, shaking it and her bangles rattled. "Nice to meet you." We said in unison. I put my attention back to my idiot brother, who was getting seated on his bike. "So you _are_ leaving me?" I huffed and he rolled his eyes, "Star and I are just going to get something to eat. I'll be right back, ok?" He said it like it was nothing. Which really pissed me off even more.

Star took Michael's hand and began to get on his bike, when the roar of engines surrounded us. I looked around, seeing it was the four I had just left, Laddie on the back of Dwayne's motorcycle which had stopped just behind me. "Where are you going, Star?" David had asked. It was obvious Michael was treading on charted territory, and I shot him a look that said 'it's over, let her go.'

"For a ride, this is Michael." Star wore an annoyed expression, and began to get on the back of Michael's bike again when David called her. "Star?" She sighed in defeat, and I furrowed my brows. She acted like a dog, crawling back to David and getting on the back of his bike. David eyed Michael like a vulture did his next meal. "You know where Hudson's Bluff is, overlooking the point?" He asked and Michael shook his head. "I can't beat your bike."

"You don't have to beat me, Michael, you just have to try and keep up."


	5. Chapter 4

From all my fifteen years of growing up with Michael, I knew from the start he was a very competetive person. He never backed down to a challenge, either to prove he wouldn't punk out or just to hoist his 'manly' ego higher onto Cloud Nine. Regardless, I felt my anxiety spike as soon as I saw the look on my older brother's face. To David's challenge, in his eyes I could read 'well, may the best man win.'

"Michael, please, come on, let's just go home." I begged him, and he never took his eyes off of David and Star. "Either get on or stay here, Sophie. Your choice." He retorted, kicking his bike to life. I definitely didn't want to stay there by myself, but I was scared of what lengths Michael would go to just to impress some girl. I had to make a quick decision, and I knew I would regret either one.

I groaned, seating myself on the back of Michael's bike just as David had started his own bike. "We're goin' for a ride, bud." A low voice had said, and I looked over to see it was Dwyane who had spoken. I had caught his eye last minute, and he winked with a wicked smirk before pulling out behind the others. I barely had enough time to grip Michael's jacket before he took off.

We did pretty much everything that my mother would kill us for if she knew we had done it. We went down stairs to the beach, rode in the sand and barely missed bystanders lying about, we rode under the boardwalk, nearly hitting our heads on the banisters up top, we even rode in the woods, far away from any civilization I knew of. The salty sea air stung my eyes, and the speeds we were reaching would have us pulled over any minute. But then again, I couldn't really say it wasn't fun. I found myself laughing out loud and squealing in delight as we took on turns just a little too fast to be safe.

Until Michael skidded and we toppled over on top of each other. I nearly had screamed from the pain in my leg as it was crushed under the bike, but Michael was able to get up easily before he launched himself at David. "No!" I heard Star scream, as well as the sound of a fist coming in contact with something else. I wasn't paying much attention, I was still trying to get myself from under his bike.

A hand reached out to me, curling around my left bicep and pulling me out as the bike was lifted off of me with another hand. I was brought to my feet, though it was hard to stand. My leg was bleeding, and I had a small yet long cut from my mid-thigh to my knee. I needed support from the person who was holding me and it turns out that person just so happened to be Dwayne.

"Th-thank you..." I said, noticing his eyes trailing down my leg and focusing on the cut. He swallowed thickly, tearing his eyes away and turning to face the other direction, shaking his head. "No problem." His voice was shaky, and I furrowed my brows. _How could someone like him have a problem with blood? I mean, he probably had to deal with it at least a couple of times on that bike of his, right?_

"Sophie? Hey, Soph, are you ok?" Michael asked, coming out of his rage with David - for almost killing us, a rage I definitely could understand - and he practically ripped me from Dwayne's grip. "Don't touch her." He growled, looking at my leg. "God, you're bleeding; we need to get you home." I nodded, and he lifted his bike to pick it up when a hand clapped him on the shoulder. "You have unfinished business here, Michael. Don't start what you can't finish."

It was Mr. Dee Snider, with his bushy blonde hair, and I furrowed my brows. "I think he can leave to take his little sister home." I interjected, pushing his hand off of Michael's shoulder. David smiled down at me with a dark chuckle, "One of my boys would be more than happy to take you home, Sophie." Michael scoffed, "the hell they are, I'm taking her home."

Star spoke up suddenly, "Michael, maybe it would be best if one of them just took her home. She would be in good hands." Was this girl serious? "She's in good hands with me. Her brother." Michael said. "Well, Michael if you plan on seeing Star ever again, you'll come with us and leave your sister in the capable hands of..." He thought for a minute before grinning wide, "Dwayne." That shut Michael up real quick. Leaving me gaping at him in just complete shock and a little bit of betrayal.

 _What a refutable brother I have coming to my rescue. He turns me down for a girl he just met. Gotta love family._

"What about Laddie?" I heard Dwayne ask from behind us, "I can ride with Marko." Laddie's childish voice said. I had almost forgotten he was there. He jumped off of Dwayne's bike and walked over, hopping on the bike of the longer-haired blue-green eyed boy. So that was Marko. I shivered as the cold air of the wind blew, considering I was in shorts and a short sleeved top.

"If mom asks," Michael said, picking up his bike, "say I left to go fill out one more application and you just wanted to come home, ok?" I rolled my eyes at him, "yeah, yeah, sure. You're my knight in shining armor." I mumbled under my breath, heading over to Dwayne's bike as they all took off, leaving us there.

I rubbed my bare arms, and Dwayne didn't even look as he shrugged off his jacket, leaving him with a bare torso and something really hard for me not to stare at. He placed it around my shoulders, and I furrowed my brows, "won't you be cold?" I inquired and he shook his head, "I'll be alright." He retorted. Climbing on his bike.

"Why are you being so nice to me?" I asked, taking both myself and him aback a little. He sighed, "you took such good care of Laddie, and brought him back safe. I just figured I'd return the favor." He stated somberly, showing no emotion. _How could this guy be so cocky one minute and then so... sanguid the next?_ Regardless, I got on the back of his bike and wrapped my arms around his waist. He was warm to the touch, and I sighed to calm myself. "Well, thank you. I really appreciate you doing this." I whispered, just loud enough for him to hear.

The drive back was a lot less scary than the drive up here. It was smooth sailing - Dwayne drove quickly and efficiently, without really seeming like he was going too fast at all. We made it to my house, with my instructions, within fifteen minutes. Whereas with Michael it took at least twenty-five. All the lights were off, which meant it would be easy to hide my injury from my mom when I got in. I thanked him once more for my ride home, blushing as he grinned and winked at me once more before walking up to my door. He waited there too on his bike, until I got to my door. It was only when I turned around that I remembered I still had his jacket around my shoulders.

"Wait! You forgot your jacket- and you're gone."

Thank you so much for the reviews and favorites and follows! Tell me some stuff you may want to see in the next chapter, I want some ideas from you guys :) XO - Kari


	6. Chapter 5

"Dammit, Michael Sullivan Emerson - wake up!" I yelled at the top of my lungs, hitting my dust and dirt covered brother, sleeping the day away. He was still in the clothes he was in last night, which no doubt meant he didn't get in til the early hours of the morning. I didn't smell any alcohol, thank God, nor did I smell cigarettes. He also had on a pair of sunglasses, which made no sense considering the blinds were closed and the sun was covered by the clouds due to an overcast today.

"Michael!" I growled, pushing him. It took all my strength and then some to push his heavy body off of the bed and onto the floor - and that had definitely woken him up. "Ow, what the hell?" He cursed, rolling over onto his back. "Soph, come on, it's too early to be up." He groaned, covering his face with an arm. "Too early? Mike, it's four in the afternoon! Mom went to six hours ago and she's on the phone, wanting to talk to you." I told him and he only groaned more, heaving himself up from the floor and trudging downstairs with myself in tow.

I really wanted to know what happened last night. He could be up til three in the morning and still manage to be up for school at six without complaining about himself being tired. He seriously needed to take a shower, because it looked like he was rolling in a pile of dirt. While he was on the phone with our mom, I made my way upstairs and to my room.

Dwayne's jacket was draped across the edge of my bed, same place I rested it last night. He was... something else. One minute he's quiet and mysterious, the next minute he's laughing and having fun, then he's arrogant and then he's ready to rip someone's head off. I preferred to stay out of range for the last one. But the one thing I was confused about, was how did Laddie find me last night? He was so lost and scared the first night we met, and it was like he somehow memorized the boardwalk in the short hours of the day.

All of this seemed really suspicious to me. Especially David. The way he eyed Michael last night, I didn't like it. It reminded me of a dictator, and how he would lure in his to-be-soldiers and recruit them. It just didn't rub me the right way. But he was Michael's friend, I suppose - last I checked, friends didn't try to get other friends to nearly drive off of a cliff into ragged rocks with their little sister on board.

Regardless of it all, I needed to figure out how to get Dwayne his jacket back. Michael would kill me if he found out I had it.

"Laddie, I said not now!" David all but yelled at the child who was driving him up the wall. Just a few hours of sleep. That was all he asked. Two, maybe three. But the kid was relentless. "Go to sleep, kid." Paul muttered to him, turning to face away from him. "David you promised! You said last night would be the night I could feed!" He yelled.

It was David's own damned fault. He knew the consequences of turning someone that young - they would be stuck with the same mentality for the rest of eternity. "Well now I'm saying it's being extended. You wont be able to feed at all if you don't shut up and get some sleep!" He snarled at Laddie, who only curled up his little fists in rage. He kicked and hit the walls on his way out of the elder vampires' den, tears welling up in his eyes at both the pain of hunger and the pain of hatred.

He just wanted to get it all over with so he wouldn't have to hurt anymore.

Star was well off, snoozing on the bed she and Laddie shared. However, besides the little one, there was one vampire in particular who was still awake. Laddie stomped over to him and sat down next to him, "I take it the talk with David didn't go so well, bud?" Dwayne asked, wrapping his arm around Laddie.

Laddie shook his head, "he won't keep his promises, Dwayne." The older boy sighed, "David just wants everything to be perfect, Laddie. Your first feeding should be special, not something you do in just the heat of the moment." He said, ruffling his hair. Laddie was playing with Dwayne's free hand in his lap, mapping the size of his hand in comparison. "But I don't want to kill Sophie. She's nice, I like her."

Dwayne had to snort, you and me both, bud. Wait. He did a double take. Did he really just think that? He shook his head a little to clear his thoughts of it. "Well, you don't exactly have to kill her, you know." He advised. Laddie looked up at him, "what do you mean?" Dwayne sighed. He always imagined taking his little brother ot baseball games and teaching him how to win the ladies - not about Encyclopedia Vampyrica.

"To turn completely, you don't have to drain the person of all their blood." Laddie furrowed his brows, "but David said-" Dwayne rolled his eyes, "David is an idiot." He mumbled. A faint "I heard that!" sounded from the den, but they ignored it. "Besides, if you like her so much, you can just turn her." The words sounded foreign on his tongue, and he couldn't picture someone like Sophie as someone like him. She was too sweet, and caring, he didn't want to ruin her life like that. However, he didn't want to see her die either. She actually seemed to be growing on him, even if it was a little bit.

What am I even thinking? She's a human! I'd have to be out of my damn mind to even consider-

"Well what do you think I should do, Dwayne?" Laddie asked, looking up at him with his big green eyes. Dwayne exhaled sharply, "I think you should do what you think is best. Don't let David put those thoughts into your head." He pulled Laddie in closer, rubbing his shoulder. "And to tell you the truth, I don't really want you to kill Sophie either." He whispered with a grin. Laddie laughed, "you like her too, don't you?" Laddie assumed and Dwayne chuckled, "don't get ahead of yourself, kiddo." And that was the moment that Laddie finally started asking the real questions.

"Dwayne, where's your jacket?"


	7. Chapter 6

"So what's the plan for tonight?" I asked after I came downstairs and into the kitchen, grabbing an apple from the fruit bowl. "What do you mean?" Sam inquired over one of his comic books. Michael was still on the phone with our mom, and I took a bite from my apple. "Are we going to go galavanting around the town," I peered at the comic he was reading, "slicing the heads off of every single vamp we see?" I joked, ruffling his dirty blond hair.

Sam shooed me away, "mom is out on a date with her little 'boyfriend.'" He spoke the word with disgust and I pretended to gag. "Let's just hope she doesn't come home at three AM covered in dirt and in need of a shower!" I shouted at Michael as he started up the stairs, to which in return I was just given the finger. "Piss off, Sophie!" He grumbled, heading for his room.

I giggled, pushing a piece of hair behind my ear. The sun was beginning to set, and it was beautiful outside. I walked out on the back porch, leaning against the banister as I just watched the infinite array of colors, ranging from blue to pink to orange. Sunsets were always my favorite part of a day - I liked to think of it as depicting all the positive things that happened to each and every person for just that one day, and draping them across the sky in an unfathomable amount of color; so at least you'd be able to experience one good thing no matter how bad your day was.

I heard the soft pad of a four legged creature behind me, and I peered over my shoulder to see it was Nanook. I smiled, "hey there, Nanook." I greeted him, walking over to the bench and pulling my legs up. I patted my lap, to which he replied by jumping up on the bench beside me and placing his big head in my lap. "To what do I owe this honor?" I asked, scratching him behind his ears.

I sighed, "can we talk, Nanook? It's been a while since we've had a heart to heart." I asked, and I only got a grumble from the back of his throat in response. A smile tugged at the corner of my lips, and I ran my nails along the top of his head and he closed his eyes in appreciation. "I don't know how I feel about this place... the people are so much different." I whispered.

"I don't know how I feel about Laddie either." I added, "there's no way this kid could have memorized an entire mass of a boardwalk that big in less than a day. Unless he's the spawn of Batman. Then I'd understand, but he's not." I deadpanned, resting my chin on my palm. "And then there's his older brother... I still have his jacket from last night." I mumbled, and Nanook raised his head at me and tilted it.

"Don't give me that look, come on!" I groaned, "and I just don't know what to do, I mean he's so quiet and mysterious and... hot- wooooah. No. Nope. Not even." I caught myself, facepalming to a degree no other could match. "I need help, Nanook." I huffed, rubbing my forehead. Suddenly, the big black and white dog surged up and raced to the side of the house, barking like his life depended on it. "Ugh," I groaned, getting up, "Sam!" I yelled, "come get your stupid, non caring-"

And I realized the source of his barking, which had resorted to low growling. There he was, Dwayne, standing by the side of my house. With still no shirt on.

"N-Nevermind! I - I think I got him!" I called back, not taking my eyes off of the half-naked biker. I snapped my attention to the dog who was about to bite his face off, _fairly attractive face_ , and recalled the intensity of the situation. "Nanook! Inside!" I snapped my fingers, pointing to the door, and the oh-so-protective dog was much obliged to take his happy self back inside.

It was needless to say, I was baffled. "What are you doing here?" I asked, covering my bare arms self consciously. Dwayne sighed, "Laddie wouldn't stop talking about you all night last night, he wants to see you again. He's at the boardwalk with David, Paul and Marko." _Ah, and the last of the three blonde stooges has been identified._ "I told him I'd come and pick you up."

I deflated, "no, Dwayne, I meant what are you doing here, as in walking around the side of my house?" I detailed, and he chuckled a little, "I suppose that does seem kind of creepy, huh?" I giggled and pinched my forefinger and thumb only an inch apart, showing him a little bit. "Well, I was walking up to your door when I heard you talking back here. I figured showing up on your doorstep wouldn't take too kindly to Michael?" He supposed and I nodded, "you presumed correct."

"Well? Go get ready." Dwayne told me, and I raised my brows, "what do you mean go get ready?" I inquired and he smirked, "come on, Laddie's waitin'. Are you really gonna refuse a small child the favorite person he wants to see?" Oh I see. It was time for a guilt trip. I narrowed my eyes, and he stood tall, four feet away, with his arms crossed and his brow arched high.

I couldn't really compete, so I relented and pouted the entire time I stomped inside to get ready - I was no better than anyone Laddie's age. I snuck past Michael's and Sam's rooms, tucking into my own and slipping on a grey Rolling Stones tank top, which cut off at the midsection, and had the sleeves cut off. It hung loosely in the sleeves, so I put on a black tank top underneath as well as a pair of black high waisted shorts. I put on my black combat boots just because I felt like it.

I grabbed my bag and slung it over my shoulder, though not before grabbing Dwayne's jacket. I scribbled down a note, saying I got a call from an employer for a quick job interview and that I would be back later. I pasted it on the counter, grabbed my key to the house, and walked out the back door to where Dwayne was still waiting. The sun had now fully set and was replaced with the moon, though it was maybe a few minutes til it was over when he had gotten here. I held out his jacket to him, but he shook his head, guiding me by the small of my back as we left the house and walked to his bike. _I would be a liar if I said I didn't feel pretty damn lucky, and that his touch didn't send shivers up my spine._

"You wear it tonight, you look sexy with it on."

Ohhhhhh snap Dwayne's gettin' a lil risque if you know what I mean lol. Thank you so much for the reviews and the favorites and the follows and don't be shy to PM me! I love talking to you guys. Tell me what your favorite part has been so far - give me some feedback, some constructive criticism. Something! XO - Kari


	8. Chapter 7

Even though the wind blew hard and cold against my face, it was still redder than a tomato when we arrived at the boardwalk. I tried to hide it behind my mass of blonde curls, keeping my hazel eyes low as we got off of the bike. "Sophie!" Laddie screamed, running off from Star and barrelling into me. He jumped up, wrapping his legs around mine and his arms around my stomach. I giggled, "jeez Louise, kid you're heavy!" I groaned, nearly falling backwards if it weren't for Dwayne standing behind me.

Laddie released his death grip, taking my hand, "come on, Sophie, we need to ride the carousel." He exclaimed, tugging me along. Without thinking, I instinctively grabbed Dwayne's hand, pulling him towards the carousel with Laddie. _You, ma'am, are making something very similarly akin to a mistake._ I thought. His hand felt warm against mine, it was calloused, probably from riding that bike so much - though it was smooth.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to drag you over here." I apologized, "I actually don't know why I even did it, to be honest." I confessed, but Dwayne only grinned. "Don't worry about it, I like seeing Laddie have some fun once and a while." He said, and he curled his hand around mine, lacing his fingers through the spaces between and wrapping an arm around my shoulders. I could feel that scarlet blush returning to my recently paled cheeks.

"I wanna ride that one!" Laddie said, pointing to a dull blue elephant, with big green eyes and a black, high top-hat. I giggled, pulling out a few quarters and handing it to the man running the whole ride. "Only a child once, I suppose." I lamented, getting on top of the ride and walking Laddie to the one he wanted before it had gotten taken. I strapped him on the elephant, marvelling at how cute it was.

"Dwayne, come here!" I called, "come here, come here, come here - stand by Laddie really quick." I said, digging through my bag furiously to find what I needed before the ride started. Both boys raised a brow at me, but I ignored them, feeling my hand clasp around the plastic substance. I pulled out my disposable camera I had gotten the minute I arrived in Santa Carla. Why not put it to good use? I still had a lot of film left, too - I wasn't much of a photographer, but this was a sight worth remembering.

Laddie huffed, "come on, Sophie, not pictures!" He groaned and I saw Dwayne's face twist into a hard look. "I don't think that's a good idea, Sophie." He said, his tone very serious. He looked scared almost. "What's the big deal, come on, boys," I aimed my camera, winding it up and taking a picture. "It's just a photo." I added smugly, putting my camera into my bag and walking back over to where the two boys stood. Laddie was fine, he was having the time of his life. However Dwayne? Not so much.

I furrowed my brows, "are you alright? If it's about the picture, I mean I don't have to get it developed I was just trying to make the most of tonight-" I went on before Dwayne stopped me short. "I'm fine, Sophie. It's just..." He sighed, "let's just say that there's a lot in this world you don't know about, and I don't want you finding anything out before I think you're ready to." He spoke, and I was now even more confused.

"What is that supposed to mean?" I inquired, and Dwayne's serious face turned into a crooked smirk that almost made my knees weak, "it means be a kid while you still have the chance. Not all of us live forever." He commented. I scoffed, "I'm only fifteen, I'm not a kid!" I defended, punching him in the shoulder. He chuckled, "yeah? And I'm nineteen. You're a kid. Cherish it." He countered.

The ride ended, and Laddie, Dwayne and I got off, heading back to where David, Star, Marko, and Paul stood. The boys were checking out girls who passed, giving the boys who passed a death glare, and the kids - the kids they didn't pay much attention to I suppose. "I take it the princess wont give you back your jacket, D?" Paul asked, and that was when I realized I was _still_ wearing it. _Gah, I feel like an idiot._ I began to shrug it off, getting to my wrists when Dwayne stopped me.

"No, leave it on. Ignore him, he's just being a dick." He whispered over my shoulder to me, grabbing the ridges at the top of the jacket and sliding it back up until it was back on my shoulders where it had been before. "I'm just messin' with you, Sophie," Paul told me, and I forced a smile, nodding, "no offense taken." I mumbled, hearing a loud, shrill voice over the cluster of people.

When I peered over, I saw it was my mother. Running. Screaming something about Michael and Sam.

"Oh my God, that's my mom! She can't see me, she'll freak out - Dwayne, I'm supposed to be at home!" Now twas I who was flipping my shit. Like mother, like daughter. I was taken by the shoulders, and placed against Dwayne's bike. "Well, let's make sure if she looks," my shoulders became my waist, and he became very real and very close. "She won't know it's you." He added. Now, this was something I hadn't expected.

Dwayne closed the space between us, curling his hand around the side of my face and pressing his lips to mine.

Well, this one is a little shorter, but here you go! And bow-chicka-wow-wow things are gettin' a lil saucy ;) lol. XO - Kari


	9. Chapter 8

_Everything froze. The sound around me dropped, the cold air was no longer eating at my skin, the salty, sea air no longer subconsciously made my nose want to bleed. There was nothing else in the world except Dwayne, me, and our lips joined together. I had no idea what I was doing, I just stood there like a bump on a log, making a pretty damn good impression of a gaping fish._

 _My nervousness was building up, so much that I felt almost sick. Butterflies were nothing compared to the apprehension I felt. And I stood corrected. I felt extremely sick. Now sit back, relax and cue the embarrassing scene where I push away from Dwayne and practically launch myself over to the nearest garbage can, spending some one on one time as I threw up the contents of my stomach._

I didn't go back to the boardwalk for a whole two weeks following that night. Hell, I barely left my room. I was so mortified - an extremely attractive person of your preferred sex kisses you, and you repay them by knocking them away and throwing up? Where is that socially acceptable as a normal thing? On what level of normalcy does that lay?

I couldn't even look at Dwayne for the rest of the night, which for me was short lived. After my whole incident, I asked him to take me home. I apologized. And I went inside. That was it. I felt horrible, and I knew that it was an accident but that didn't make it excusable. It came off as so terribly rude, and I just wanted to bury my head in the sand.

And he didn't try to contact me either. No showing up at my door (or back for that matter), no throwing rocks at my window, no boom-boxes blaring some lovesick Metallica song. And I didn't expect him to. I behaved to wrongly to him, I was unjust - my punishment was something a little more personal however: my own self loathing as I overthink about that night, a continuous, vicious cycle in my own head.

A double-knock sounded at my door, and I groaned from my heap on the bed. I burrowed underneath my covers, "go away, I'm not in the mood." I mumbled, though the person - whom I found out to be Sammy - ignored me and came into my room. "I said go away." I grumbled, content with being in my little burrow of a pity-party and not having to talk to people. Especially people _*cough* Sam *cough*_ who would make fun of me for it.

"Sophie, it's been two weeks." Sam stated, coming to sit by me on my bed. "So what?" I muttered, monotone. "So what? Are you kidding?" Sam scoffed, "you never come out of your room, barely even for food - and it's all because of what ever you're not telling us happened that night you came back from a job interview on the boardwalk." He rambled. I sighed, "what is your _point_?" I could feel anger and resentment behind my words, seeping through my teeth like venom.

"My point is that you need to tell us what happened - if not mom or Michael, then at least me." Sam had always come in second for keeping secrets, with me in first of course, and I knew I could trust him to keep his big flapper shut. However, that didn't mean he wouldn't have a good laugh to further humiliate me. I paused for a few beats, raising my head from my covers and pillows that I made into a small fort around it.

"Promise you wont laugh?" I negotiated, and we locked pinkies on it. I rubbed my face with a groan, "that night... I didn't go for a job interview. I went out with some friends." I began and he raised a brow. "You have friends?" The look I gave him shut that remark back into his mouth. "Sorry, sorry, continue." I sighed, "anyways, before I left, this guy that I actually really really liked, he kissed me."

Sam pretended to gag, "eugh, with _your_ death breath?" I socked him in the shoulder, "will you shut up and let me finish?!" I snapped, and he laughed before raising his hands in surrender. I felt my face heat up and I covered it, my voice muffled but still understandable. "And then I puked from being so nervous. In a nearby trash bin." I said.

It grew quiet, and I peeked out from behind my fingers to see Sam holding back his laughter. I appreciated the effort. "And now I feel horrible. I don't even have the nerve to show my face." I whispered, running my hands through my knotted bird's nest I called hair. I didn't think I took a brush to it in a week. "Well, big sister," he began, standing up. "I think you should go up to this guy, after you brush your teeth of course cause, you know, ew, and then just plant one on him. Michael and I are going to the boardwalk and you're coming." Sam finished, grinning cheekily as he exited my room and shut the door.

I huffed, taking my rightful place back within the safety of my covers, _the hell I'm going._

Kinda short, but just a filler chapter to keep you guys going. So sorry! - Kari


	10. Chapter 9

"I'm not going."

"Yes, you are."

"I'm not going."

"Yes, you are."

"I'm not!"

"You are!"

That was the consistency of the conversation between Sam and I. Michael didn't really seem to care - but then again, he didn't care about much anymore other than hanging out with his friends until the early hours of the morning. I couldn't blame him, there wasn't much to do around here anyways. Sam had been pressuring me to go and show my face to the world since the minute he woke me up, and I had to continuously tell him no.

Well it was time to leave, and he was still pushing.

"You don't even know if he's gonna be there tonight, Soph, just come on!" Sam groaned, pulling me up from my bed. "He's there every night!" I countered, pulling my wrist from his grip and pushing my hair out of my face. I was sure I was a hot mess, but I just didn't want to go. I wanted to wallow in my shame and self-loathing. "Look, Sophie," Sam sighed, sitting on my bed next to me. "I get it, you're embarrassed and don't want to revist it. I get it."

Sam paused for a minute, "but, mom said that no matter what you do, there's always room to fix our mistakes." He said, giving me his puppy dog eyes. I narrowed my eyes at him, "don't do that." I muttered, getting up from my bed for the first time in almost twelve hours, heading towards my bathroom. I grabbed my brush and got to getting the knots out. "Don't do what?" Sam asked, a smirk on his face as he full-knew what he was doing.

"Cheating." I mumbled, "mom says cheaters never prosper." I reminded and he rolled his eyes, a victorious grin on his face. "You have thirty minutes, then we're out of here." He said and I scoffed, "Samuel Emerson, you're the one making me go - we go when I'm ready to." I yelled before he left my room and headed downstairs.

It took me twenty minutes to straighten my hair, after about five hair-wrenching minutes of agony as I ripped out nearly half my head. I then took myself to my closet, deciding what to wear. I needed to look pretty damn good in order to make up for how much of a mess I was last time. I decided on a loose grey v-neck that tied off at my midsection, pairing it with my black jeans and grey converse.

I eyed Dwayne's jacket in the corner, biting my lip as I decided on whether or not to take it. "Sophie, come on, Christ!" Michael cursed up the stairs and I huffed, "I'm going to regret this." I whispered, grabbing Dwayne's jacket and shoving it into my bag. Michael still didn't know that I had it, and I didn't plan on him finding out.

"Come on," Michael said, holding up a set of keys. He led us out to the garage, where our grandfather's car lay untouched for only the Gods knew how long. We hopped in, Sam getting in the backseat while I sat up front with Michael. This was one of the rules: never touch the car. "Grandpa's going to kill us." I whispered, shaking my head as Michael started the car.

It took us fifteen minutes to get to the boardwalk, and Michael parked the car down an alleyway a little ways away from the boardwalk, just in case some drunks decided to get a little too familiar with it and get it totalled. We already were gonna get reamed for taking it. If we got so much as one scratch on that car, we would be toast for sure. I wouldn't get to see my high school graduation.

"Meet up here at eleven-thirty. Grandpa get's home from the Widow Johnson's at midnight at the earliest, so we need to beat him there." Michael said before he took off walking down the boardwalk. Sam shrugged, "I'm heading to the comic book store." He told me. And I was left at the entrance to the boardwalk. I sighed, running a hand through my hair and entering, walking aimlessly around until a pair of little arms wrapped around my waist from behind. I jumped, turning around only to be faced with my just absolute _favorite_ little lost monster.

Laddie.


	11. Chapter 10

I swear this day just keeps getting better and better.

I turned around and sighed, crouching down, "Laddie, what are you doing here?" He looked feverish, sickly almost, but he kept a smile on his face. "I've been looking for you!" Laddie said happily, but a look of upset crossed his childish features. "You didn't come back for a while... was it because of me?" He asked and I exhaled sharply, "no, Laddie, of course it wasn't because of you, it was because-" I began to explain but Laddie cut me off. "Of Dwayne?"

I pursed my lips, flattening them into a hard line, "because I was busy. Let's leave it at that." I lied. It most definitely was because of Dwayne and what happened last time I visited the boardwalk. But how are you going to tell a kid that his older brother kissed you to shield your face from your shrill, banshee of a mother and then you threw up? That didn't sound like it would go over well in my head.

"Will you walk with me down to the beach?" He asked out of the blue, and I furrowed my brows, "it's ten at night, Laddie, the water's gotta be freezing." I said and he shook his head, "no, not to swim, silly." He said, "when my mommy was still around, we used to go to the beach at night and pick up seashells, we'd hold them up to the moon and they'd be real pretty." I didn't want to give in. I really didn't. But I just couldn't refuse a face like that.

"Alright, but only for a little bit, I don't have much time." I told him, and a smile lit up his face better than a Christmas tree. I took his hand and we walked together down to the beach. On the way down, we talked about random stuff, made fun of a few Surfer Nazi's as they passed, and eventually we made it down to the tide.

He led me a little farther down, to where there were no people so 'no one could disturb our seashell collection', as he says. I rolled up the pant legs of my jeans to my knees, tugging off my shoes and socks and placing them in my bag, putting it farther up shore to help him look for shells. Then, we got to work.

We were laughing, having fun as we splashed each other a few times, stumbling upon a few really good shells. "It's too cold, Laddie!" I squealed as an absolute _shower_ of water splashed against me, getting my shirt, face and hair wet. "Oh you're gonna get it!" I yelled playfully as I ran at him, but I lost my footing under the water and I slipped, toppling into the cold, shallow abyss and something plunged into my stomach.

I screamed in agony as I pulled myself up, the pain worsening and Laddie helped to drag me out of the water. "What happened?!" Laddie asked, freaking out from above me as he tried to figure out what was wrong. His eyes scanned down my freezing, shaking body when his eyes zeroed in on what was stuck in my stomach. "It's a shell. It's stuck." He told me, his voice sounding like he was entranced. "What?! Get it out!" I exclaimed, reaching down to rip it out when his hand closed around my wrist.

He was surprisingly strong for a child, to be able to stop me entirely and keep my arm still. "Laddie - what..?" I felt my breathing quicken it's pace in fear as he got closer to my now bleeding stomach. It soaked my shirt, and his hand closed around the shell shard sticking in my stomach and ripped it out with one pull.

It felt worse coming out than it did when it happened. I cried out and it felt like it tore my muscle and skin on the way out. The look on Laddie's face was murderous, looking at the bloody shell and the blood on his hands. "Sophie..." He whispered, closing his eyes, and when he opened them - everything changed. Everything became clear: he didn't lose his brother, that was just to trap me in. I was a target from the get-go. I was nothing but a source of food - just a walking, talking bag of blood. I felt so stupid, so naive.

"I'm sorry."

/Its really short but I **_HAD_** to leave it there. :) - Kari


	12. Chapter 11

Laddie had never felt more regret in his life. He was selfish, and couldn't wait anymore. He just wanted all the pain to go away - and sure enough, he definitely did. It was replaced with a brand new type of stinging pain; guilt, remorse. He was only eight when he was forced to drink David's blood. Some kids from the middle school were roughing him up one day on the boardwalk, and beat him down pretty badly. Before anything could go too far, Dwayne scared them off. Laddie, however, was bleeding internally from all the punches and kicks - so, David decided to recruit him.

He was closer to Sophie than he was with Star, mainly because Star only kept him from being turned to save the rest of her mortality. And he eternally ruined any chance of having any type of friendship with her. He betrayed her.

It wouldn't work if Laddie turned her, considering his blood hadn't been consecrated yet like David's or any of the others. Star was older, but hers wouldn't work either because she hadn't been fully turned. He was running out of options as well as time as he stared down at the mess he had made. Sophie was lying motionless, eyes closed and her skin paler than ghost white. "Sophie..?" He whispered, feeling tears come to his eyes as he realized what he'd just done.

"Sophie, come on - wake up..." He said, leaning forward and taking her face between his small, child hands. "Sophie!" He practically yelled, "Sophie, wake up! Wake up!" He began to sob, falling forward into the sand next to her. "I'm so sorry, Sophie, I'm so sorry..." He repeated over and over. He may have been only eight, but he was turned for nearly a decade. He had the mentality of one who was much older, as well as the morals.

He had drained her - he couldn't hear or feel a pulse; she was gone. And it was all his fault.

"Well done, Laddie!" A voice came from above him, and he jumped, "David!" He chorused, "you can save her!" He exclaimed, and David raised a brow, "I beg your pardon?" David asked, condescendingly to the younger lad. "Save her..." he whispered, "I know you can, your blood - it helped me; help her!" Laddie said, apalled at David's refusal.

"Oh, Laddie, Laddie, Laddie." He smirked, "she was meant to die. That's what this whole thing was about wasn't it? Making your first kill?" David said, crouching down to Laddie's height and taking a hold of his shoulders. "And for the first time, Laddie, I'm actually proud of you." David's hands were slapped away as Laddie moved back towards Sophie's body. "If you're not going to help me then just go! Leave!" Laddie snarled between sobs. "You want me to leave? By all means." David said sanguinely. Eyeing Sophia's body, he smiled at his creations' handiwork. "You've chosen which side you're on." And with that, he was gone - disappeared from the shore and leaving the two to themselves.

Laddie heard footsteps and slowly recognized the sound of the boots approaching. "What did you do..." It wasn't a question, it was a complete exasperation - a gasp of true fear. The older vampire didn't fear very much, but the sight before him was enough to send shivers down his spine. "Laddie, what did you do?!" This time he was louder, running his hands through his long dark hair as he fell to his knees. "I couldn't control myself, Dwayne..." Laddie shook his head, his voice quivering as he heaved in breaths, "I'm sorry, Dwayne, I'm so sorry."

Paul and Marko came up behind Dwayne not long after, their eyes briefly shutting as the smell of blood was still very crisp in the air. "Oh my God." Marko breathed just as Paul mumbled, "no way." They saw Sophie's body and leaned down on one knee next to her. Each of them shrugged off their jackets, draping them over her as a sign of respect. Call it a cliche, but when they were both human, they had religion - and so they blessed her body with the Catholic cross motion.

Marko never minded her, in fact, he actually thought she was pretty cool. She was nice, and tried as hard as possible not to be rude to anything unless it went against her protocol of ''morals'' strictly. He and Paul both saw her as a baby sister, because she was in every way. But did she deserve this? Both of them could say no that she didn't. Out of anyone they'd ever met, she was more deserving of life. Even David couldn't match her. They preferred her honestly over Star, because she wasn't annoying, and was quirky in a good way - especially around Dwayne.

Dwayne pulled her corpse up to him, holding her lifeless body in his arms. "Laddie," he whimpered, water clouding his vision as a tear fell on her cheek. "Laddie, no, please tell me you- you didn't." Dwayne stroked Sophie's cheek, wiping away the tear that had fallen. He had never felt as much for someone as he'd felt for Sophie. Laddie was close, but that was a brother bond he'd had back when he was human with his own four brothers. He had already experienced being a mentor, but a lover to someone? It was like discovering new land.

He knew Sophie fancied him too. Ever since that moment David showed the rest of them who Laddie's target would be, he would live to regret going along with it. Her long, blonde hair that rested at her backside in big curls, her tan that lightly dusted her skin, her dark hazel eyes that always had a smile. She was perfect. She was kind and sweet, and wouldn't hurt a fly. And this was his mess - he should have convinced David to pick someone else. Marko soon got an idea. "Dwayne, what about _your_ blood?" He asked.

Dwayne was turned by Max in 1874. He was the second in command to David, because he was the second newborn. David had already been a vampire for at least two generations, and now that he had someone to boss around, he figured why not teach him how to make children. David made more than a couple hundred vampires in his time, but Dwayne only observed. Eventually, David consecrated Dwayne's blood. But he never turned anyone - he wouldn't want them to suffer the way he did. But now, it seemed it was his only option. He and David were the only ones with consecrated blood - and David made his decision not to help.

The tears slowly dried from his eyes as he realized that Marko was right. There _was_ an alternative method. He lifted his head, looking at Laddie. His eyes were full of hope, "could you?!" He jumped up, "Dwayne, please tell me you can." The older vampire looked down at her pale, nearly blue lips. "I don't think it's still possible, Laddie. She's gone-" Paul reached around and put two fingers to her throat, right above her pulse point. He couldn't hear anything, but that didn't mean it wasn't still there. They were on a loud beach, what did you expect?

And there it was, it was faint, barely even noticeable, but Paul felt the light jump of her heart beating once, then twice after about ten seconds. "She's still alive... Dwayne, she's still alive." Paul whispered in awe. And Dwayne didn't delay wasting any time, he quickly set her down in the sand, gently, and took out his bike keys, while moving over her. It was the only thing sharp enough. He made quick work to make a deep cut in his wrist, opening her mouth and letting the blood drip.

"Come on, Sophie, come on..." Laddie whimpered from her left. The tension was high when she didn't respond for a few minutes, but eventually the blood kicked in and her fingers began to move. Then her whole hand. Finally her arms were moving, wrapping her thin, bony fingers around Dwayne's forearm and bringing his wrist to her mouth. She was alive, and Laddie was now crying from happiness. Paul and Marko were yipping like dogs in chorus, jumping up and down.

And then Sophie's eyes opened, only to fall back shut as black spots covered her vision.

/A long chapter but I gave you guys what you asked for! Sorry for such a wait, I'm trying to update as much as I can from now on! - Kari


	13. Chapter 12

When I say everything changed, I meant that literally. Saying that felt like an understatement, because I felt different before I even had a chance to open my eyes. I could still taste Dwayne's blood in my mouth, but the pain I had last night from the shell, and from Laddie's teeth were gone, like it wasn't even there. I couldn't feel the sticky sensation of blood on my stomach, or the feel of torn tissue and muscle. What I did feel, was every single nerve and sense factor on a live wire.

I could feel the air particles around me, the dust beneath me, the thread and every single stitch of the blanket that covered me - and the radiating warmth of the skin that touched mine. I could hear the sound of the waves outside, the birds and their wings flapping - and the slow, steady breathing next to me. I could smell the pumping blood of someone nearby, and the thought that I actually liked it made my stomach churn - I could smell the thick layer of someone's scent that wafted over me, like a blanket of lavender, exhaust, and green apple.

And when I opened my eyes, my association with all those senses came to a screeching halt. It took me a minute to focus my vision, because everything was so clear it was hard to zero in on one thing. But eventually, I focused on one thing in particular; Dwayne's face about five inches max from my own, and his brown eyes looking down on me in relief. "You're awake, thank God!" He chorused.

And then I screamed. My fist collided with his jaw, and I pushed him away from me as I rolled off what soon came to my knowledge as a bed. My bed. I was in my room - he was in my room _wHY IN THE HELL IS DWAYNE HERE IN MY ROOM WITH ME?!_ I pointed a finger at him to stop him in his tracks as he got up from my bed, holding his jaw. "Soph, please, I can explain-" I shook my head, backing away and trying not to trip over fallen things. "No, no you don't get to call me that! Explain to me what? What- how you tricked me? How you and Laddie and David and Marko, Paul, Star; that 'I can't find my brother' was just a crock of shit to lure me in!" I shouted.

"Sophie, please-" I cut him off, "why did you feed me your blood? What the hell did you do to me, I should be dead by now! I almost was before you shoved your toxin down my throat." I didn't know what had gotten into me, I hated screaming and I hated being screamed at. I was just so angry I was just vibrating with rage.

A hand curled around my upper arm and I turned around quickly, seeing it was Marko and Paul. _GREAT THE GANG'S ALL HERE, WHAT IS DAVID GONNA DO, POP OUT AND CUT MY THROAT?_ "Get off me, don't touch me - let me go!" I cried, struggling against their hold. Laddie soon appeared from the window, pulling himself up and through. "The boys, they're on their way home." He told Dwayne who sighed, "I gotta make this quick." He muttered to himself and I continued to pull at the two boys behind me.

Laddie took a few steps towards me before I registered it, and I pushed back against Paul and Marko. "No, no, no, no - you stay away from me." I was nearly in tears from fear. This little boy literally tried to _eat me._ I wasn't exactly gonna take that lightly. Laddie looked at me with remorse, but I couldn't believe it. I wouldn't. I refused.

"But S-" I shook my head, "you wont take another step towards me until you tell me what the hell is going on." I told him, and the boys' holds slipped from my upper arms to my wrists, and they softened as they soon realized all I wanted was answers. That was it. Laddie sighed, "Sophie, it's hard to explain." I scoffed, "I don't give a shit if it's harder than that shell that was jabbed into my stomach, I want answers." My voice was cold, jagged as I spat the words at Dwayne.

He almost visibly winced. "You're different. I know you can see that." He said slowly. "See it? I feel like my fingertips are dancing on electricity!" I snapped. He sighed, "it's because you're transitioning." He told me. "You're transforming into a vampire." That didn't really surprise me, given Laddie's sadistic feeding on me not too long ago. And within a millisecond, he stood less than a foot in front of me. But there was something about just looking at him so closely that washed all my anger away. Now it was just replaced with a warm feeling of content. Soon that was making me upset, because all of this was bringing me on a emotional roller-coaster heading straight to hell.

"Why?" I whispered, my eyes filling with tears, "why me?" I whimpered, putting my head in my hands. I was a sniveling, sobbing mess. "Why? What does any of this have to do with me?" I nearly screamed. I felt an arm swivel around my waist, and another hand tilt up my chin. "Stop, Sophie, I hate to see you cry." Dwayne said soothingly, wiping my falling tears. I suddenly felt more attratcted to Dwayne than I ever had before, and I just wanted him to pull me closer and closer until there was no space left between u- _heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeey no. No no. No. That's bad. This is the guy that turned you into a freaking vampire! Move awaaaaay from the dead guy._

I pushed myself away from him the speed not registering in my head quite yet, my back hitting the door and I felt it crack behind me. I felt caged, Marko and Paul at my sides, ready to grab me when needed, Dwayne a few feet away from me. "You're telling me something that I already know. How about telling me why I feel so attracted to you?" I said, feeling rouge color my cheeks. Dwayne's tanned cheeks pinked only a little. "Do you know what a sire is?" He asked, crossing his arms over his bare chest. I shook my head, rubbing my hands over my freezing arms.

Dwayne only glanced at Marko and Paul, before I was pushed away from the door and they left. I shied away from Laddie as he exited as well, leaving just me and Dwayne in my room by myself. "A sire is a type of bond between two vampires. It's a sense of... loyalty, you could say. Except there's a stronger attraction between both vampires. It's a rare occaision, only if the person is turned not by their own free will - if they're on the verge of death. You haven't fully turned, you're only a half-vampire. But it will grow stronger as you age, and once you transition." I couldn't believe what he was saying. I felt like it hit me in the gut. "So what you're telling me, is that because you turned me while I was dying, and the reason I feel this way,"

"Is because I'm falling in love with you?"


	14. Chapter 13

Lights flashed in the windows and I looked over to see it was Michael and Sam, pulling in on his bike. Paul, Laddie and Marko all entered the room and I flinched away, "they're here." Paul stated. I looked over at the time on my clock to see it was half-past two in the morning. Oh I was so incredibly dead.

 _Wait a minute-_

"Oh god, ok, you need to leave. Now. You and Marko, Paul, Laddie, all of you." I said frantically, looking down to what I was wearing. Someone had dressed me; but it was a respectible pair of black tights and my Ramones t-shirt. I looked over to my chair and saw Dwayne's jacket draped over it. What I figured was a normal speed was much more faster than any speed on Michael or Dwayne's bike.

I was starting to freak myself out, but I handed it to Dwayne, pushing it to his chest. "We can talk about this later-" I told him, and he shook his head, "Sophie, I don't want to keep hiding - your brother needs to know. Both of your brothers need to know." He said, his hand curling around mine. Now I wasn't so sure he was talking about _just_ what had happened tonight.

I wanted to give in, I really did, but I just couldn't. "Dwayne, are you nuts? You want me to tell my brothers that the reason why I left them at the boardwalk was because I was lured down to the beach by Laddie so he could feed on me after I fell into water while we were playing around and was stabbed by a sharp shell, Laddie drained me, and then you turned me into a vampire?" Even it sounded crazy to me in my own head, and it _actually happened to me_.

"Sophie?!" I heard Michael's voice call from downstairs, angry, worried, it was mixed as he hurried up the stairs. I looked at Dwayne, pleading with him. "Please, Dwayne, please - just, later. Please, we can talk about it tomorrow night." I promised and he sighed, walking over to me and kissing the top of my head, wrapping his arms around me. "Alright, alright. Make sure you get some sleep Sophie; believe me you'll need it." He said, pulling away.

And he was gone just as the door whipped open to reveal my two fuming brothers.

"Where the hell were you?! You had us worried sick, Sophie!" Michael exclaimed, running over to me and nearly hugging the life out of me. Something was different about him. I could smell Sam's blood and hear it racing a mile a minute, but it was different with Michael. It was almost like his was frozen on the spot. "You're different..." I whispered, though it was more so to myself. However, Michael still heard me.

"What are you talking about? Sophie, where did you go? Are you drunk? Are you high? Who were you with?" He was asking a million questions, pulling himself away from me to look at my face. He pushed my cheeks in with both hands, widening my eyes with his fingers and waving his hands in my face. "How many fingers am I holding up?" He asked me.

I smacked his hands away, "I'm fine, Michael. I got into it with some surfer chick down by the beach and was asked to leave the boardwalk for the night." I lied smoothly, right to his face. "Dwayne saw me walking off and gave me a ride. The security guard wouldn't let me go find you guys before I was kicked off." I lied. Now it made me wonder how Dwayne managed to get here with me on his bike.

Sam pushed past Michael, wrapping his arms around my middle and I winced. His blood was rushing fast through his body, I could hear his heart beat in my own ears - he was warm, radiating as the liquid I so craved coursed through him. "You scared me, Soph, don't do that." I felt horrible. While they were searching for me, worried out of their minds, I was against my will being turned into something out of one of Sam's horror comics.

It took me a moment to hug him back, but when I did, the door burst open to reveal my grandfather and my mom. Both with angered looks on their faces, and my mom never got angry. "Sophie Isabel Emerson, I can understand Michael staying out late until God knows how late in the night - however you? I expected you to be responsible. Set an example for Sam." I couldn't look her in the eye as she tore my head off, and all the different heart beats and different scents of blood were making me dizzy.

"Michael Sullivan- I expected more of you. You are supposed to be the big brother, setting the best example you can for Sophie and Sam - and what do you do? Stay out until the early hours of the morning, sleep all day, give attitude and just are plain disrespectful. Samuel Cole, you don't get off the hook so easy either. You know better; why do you choose to follow in their footsteps when you know it's the wrong thing to do? Steal your grandpa's car? Not even call?" The tone in her voice was enough to split us all down our backs.

"No going out tomorrow night. Your punishment while I am at work tomorrow is to stay home and clean this entire house top to bottom, do I make myself clear?" She snapped and the three of us flinched, responding in unison. "Yes ma'am." She stormed out of my bedroom with a quiet good night. My grandfather stood there, looking at us with disappointment on his face. "I don't shame your mother for letting it out on you all. You deserve it at this point." He said, turning around and closing the door behind him.

My mom was pissed more than ever at me, my grandfather disappointed, my brothers a little bit of both. I felt like I was having Stockholm Syndrome - wanting to resist, but falling in love with Dwayne; the vampire that turned me. I sighed, running my hands through my hair. I wasn't tired in the slightest, and I knew I was going to be tomorrow during the day. But I was supposed to clean as punishment with my brothers.

Michael shook his head, "I'm going to my room." He said, walking out of my room not saying another word. I knew he probably hated me now, and it only put an even heavier weight on my heart. "Don't listen to him, Sophie, I'm glad you're safe." Sam was such a good kid, and he hugged me once more - this time I could actually hug him back - and let go so he could go to his room. He left me after we exchanged goodnights, and I was alone in my room once more.

I walked over to my vanity, looking at myself in my mirror. I was much paler, almost ghostly (though to be fair, I wasn't very tan to begin with), and my eyes were darker. However, when I looked closer, I saw that it really was just that my pupils were extremely dilated. I picked up my shirt, running my fingers over a faint pink line across my stomach. It was outlined with smaller, deeper pink lines that could only be from Laddie.

I felt terrible for pushing him away as I had; he couldn't help himself. It was in his nature to do this type of thing - he needed blood and I had it. You can't wave food in front of someone who's starving and expect them not to eat it. It's improbable. I pulled my shirt back down, rubbing my bare arms as I walked over to my bed.

I climbed in, throwing my comforter over my face and I noticed a change in the scent. It was thick and familiar, green apple and exhaust. The lavender on the sheets was my own, that I knew, but the others that permeated the linen was Dwayne's. I wanted to wrap myself in it, it was like an itch I couldn't scratch. I had only knew this boy a month and already he had me wrapped around his finger.

All I knew was that I needed to figure out what I was going to say when I saw him tomorrow night.


	15. Chapter 14

"Here are your lists of chores. I expect them to be done by the time I get back at four." My mother didn't even look us in the eye as she pointed out the lists with our names on them, stamped to the refrigerator with magnets. I hadn't slept at all last night, tossing and turning, and from the looks of Michael's state it seems he didn't either. The sunlight was murder on my eyes, and I was constantly squinting even though the blinds weren't open. I rubbed at my eyes, grabbing my list and getting to work.

I was expected to have the bathroom cleaned; including the toilet, the floors mopped and the bathtub scrubbed. The kitchen; dishes done and put away, floors mopped and the table and counters wiped down. Finally, I had to do the laundry and sweep up my grandfather's taxidermy room. Michael had to mow the front yard and back yard and mop the living room and downstairs bathroom, and finally Sam had to wipe down all the windows and walls of fingerprints and organize our grandfather's television guide collection as well as the magnets on the fridge.

We had a long day ahead of us.

None of us spoke to each other, aside from the occaisional 'excuse me' to get past each other while doing our chores. My head was killing me, every minimal movement was like hammering a nail in my skull. I found a pair of my grandfather's sun glasses on the counter, using those to try and shade some of the light out of my poor eyes as I did the dishes. I hoped neither of them would say anything, until I noticed Michael was doing the same - which seemed odd. He hung out with the same crowd... it couldn't be?

By the time we had finished, we were all dead tired; though I was sure I took the cake. I collapsed on the couch, arm thrown across my shaded eyes and an exhausted sigh on my lips. Some time later I was shaken awake, opening my eyes to see it was my mother. "M-mom?" I mumbled, still very much asleep and she nodded, brushing some hair out of my face as she took the glasses off of my face. "Now what are you doing with these things on, it's the middle of the day and you're inside."

I hissed as the light bled through my eyelids, and I covered them. "No, mom - give them back!" I muttered in a grumpy tone, grabbing at the glasses like I was a child. "What is going on with you and Michael? First he starts wearing sunglasses all the time, staying out all night and now you? This is foolish, Sophie." She said lightly, and then I heard it.

The sound of her blood rushing as her temper rised was like a flood. Like the red sea Moses had parted came whooshing back together as it connected. I could hear her heart beat slowly increase, along with her voice drowning out to the sound of her blood that smelled absolutely delicious- _NO. OH MY GOODNESS, SOPHIE STOP._

I suddenly felt like I was going to be sick, and so I surged up, murmuring an apology and an excuse as I pushed off of the couch and past my mother, running up the stairs and into the bathroom. Even though I had nothing in the contents of my stomach, red washed up in the sink as I spit out whatever came up. Part of me hoped it was my body rejecting Dwayne's blood, the other part of me feared that it was my own.

"Sophie! Sophie, open the door!" The concerned voice of my mother sounded from the other side, and I groaned. "Mom, I'm fine-" I tried to convince her only to have another bout of blood coming back up. "Open this door right now, young lady or I will have your brother break it down." She threatened, and after I finished and calmed myself down, I made my way toward the door, unlocked it, and sat down against the rim of the tub.

My mother came in, worry clear on her face and I sighed. I hated to make her so anxious - it wasn't good for any of our health. "Sophie, what is going on?" She said, kneeling down and picking up my head by the sides of my face. "Nothing mom, I just-" I had to think of a good lie. One that she would believe. She wouldn't believe that I all of a sudden got a stomach virus if nothing was going around.

"Last night I was hanging out with some friends and they were drinking some sort of red liquor. I got hammered - and now it's all in the sink." Perfect. It would explain the headaches, the light sensitivity, and the vomiting. My mother sighed, but it wasn't of disappointment. It was of relief? "I thought you were going to tell me you were pregnant. But still, drinking isn't a smart thing to do at such a young age, Sophie. I thought you knew better."

 _SHE THOUGHT I WAS WHAT-?_

"Come on, you need to get yourself in bed, missy." My mom said, helping me up off of the floor and I moaned in pain from my head. "And this is your punishment, lying in bed all day with a hangover." Good one mom, let me suffer. If only it were a hangover. She helped me to my room and layed me down in my bed. She even closed the blinds for me, but before she left she had this sort of awkward look on her face.

"I just kind of assumed you might want to know... I mean, Michael and I had this talk years ago-" Oh God, oh God no. "Mom - no. Just no, I know where this is going, no." I shook my head, despite the pain, and she raised her hands up in surrender. "Alright, alright." She started to close the door.

"So you're sure we don't need to have the talk-"

" _Mom!_ "


	16. Chapter 15

Dwayne paced the floor of the cave, not having gotten any sleep since he returned. David was absolutely pissed at him for turning Sophie - so much as he wasn't speaking to him. David wouldn't even let Paul or Marko speak to him anymore when he was around. Star was livid, considering she was the only one who wasn't turned now in the cave.

Laddie felt so much guilt and so much remorse he debated driving a stake through himself. He was only eight physically, but mentally he had wisdom beyond several lifetimes. He didn't want to feed, he couldn't sleep, and he was filled to the brim with hatred of what he was. "Dwayne?" He asked quietly, and the older lad looked over to him from where he sat on the edge of the drained fountain - what had the chandeleir laying in it covered in cobwebs.

"Yes, Laddie?" He replied, looking down at his hands. They were still covered in her blood from where he had tried to stop her wound from bleeding after what Laddie had done. He curled his fists together, looking over to where the little boy sat a couple feet away on the crusty old couch that smelled of mothballs and dirt. "I don't think Sophie is ever gonna wanna talk to me again." It broke him to hear Laddie say such a thing.

He sighed, standing up and walking over to the boy, sitting down on the couch next to him and dust stirred up. He pulled Laddie into his lap and held the child as he was on the verge of tears. "Shh... don't say stuff like that." He consoled, rubbing the smaller boys back. "Sophie is a very forgiving person. There's no way that she's gonna shut you out, I'll make sure of it. I'm going to see her tonight, I'll talk to her for you. Alright?"

Laddie nodded and sniffled into Dwayne's jacket. "She gave it back to you?" He asked and Dwayne shook his head yes. "Does that mean that she doesn't like you anymore?" The question made the older boy huff a chuckle. "Laddie, to be honest with you I don't think she ever really liked me to begin with. I think she just tolerated me to make sure her brother was in good hands." He said.

"Are you kidding?" Laddie pushed himself away enough to look up at the man like he had twelve heads. "Dwayne she was head over heels for you! Every single time we brought you up or she was around you she would light up like a christmas tree!" He exclaimed and Dwayne raised a brow. Did she really? Had he always been this blind? Well, it would be something to discuss when he saw her later on that night.

"And if you say you didn't like her too, well you'd be lying your butt off." Laddie stated. "Oh, is that right?" Dwayne challenged, and Laddie nodded, getting off of Dwayne's lap and jumping on top of the fountain's edge. "I saw your face when David first pointed her out. You always have this cold, 'I'm-gonna-beat-you-up' type of thing, but when you saw her your eyes went like this big," he stretched his arms out as far as he could, "and your mouth dropped like this." He proceeded to gape like the biggest fish.

Dwayne would be a liar if he said he didn't get a kick out of this. Sophie was one of the prettiest girls he ever saw. Her nose was as cute as a button, she was always so clumsy, her laugh was like ringing bells, her voice like velvet - even when it was yelling at him - and her hair was like a long veil of pastel golden curls. Of course he wouldn't be surprised David would pick her.

Max had told him long ago that there would be one girl he would meet in all his years of being a vampire. She would be what Max called his _Alterum._ That girl would be the center of his universe from the day they met to the day they died. Max had figured to find that girl soon before, but had come up short until the day he met Lucy - Sophie and Michael's mom. Sophie looked nothing like her mom aside from her nose and her generous nature.

David hadn't found his _Alterum_. Neither had Paul. The closest anyone could come to to understanding what Dwayne was going through was Marko - formerly Marcos. He was turned in 1877, washing ashore to the New World. He was unconscious from the blow David had put to his head after Marcos had drank Max's blood, and so he began his new life while under close watch of Paul, David and Dwayne, completely unaware of what was happening to him. Max stayed to the sidelines, knowing his boys could handle it.

Marcos lived a few months in the agony of the in between stage. Like where Sophie and Star were. He only knew his name, and that his family had come from both Spaniard and Irish background. He worked as a blacksmith in New Hampshire, until he met a girl named Gemma. She was just as beautiful to Marcos as Sophie was to Dwayne. He married her right on the spot. And then when he just couldn't take it anymore, he killed her. Slaughtered her dead - tore out her throat and splattered her blood across the cottage walls.

That was when Marcos became Marko - in honor of the nickname that Gemma would call him - and he joined the gang as the baby of the group. Well, now his spot was taken by Laddie; eventually Star, Michael, and Sophie if things went according to a typical fate. Sunset came after twelve long hours of daylight, tossing and turning on the couch while Laddie slept in the bed with Star (as per usual).

David saw Dwayne sitting up from the couch once the elder had risen from his slumber and scoffed, shaking his head. "You're so pathetic. Falling in love with a human." He muttered under his breath. Dwayne stood up and shrugged his jacket on. "At least I'm capable of love, David. You just havent found her yet." He replied in a civil tone. "Found what, exactly? That _Alterum_ bullshit that Max told us when we weren't but eight years into our new lives? I gave up on that a long time ago because it doesn't exist."

Marko butted in. "It does actually, David." His tone was cold, and his eyes were colder as they narrowed into slits. He leaned down and tied his left boot. "Don't you remember where _I_ came from?" He spat, and David just scoffed once more. "That was just poor judgement and timing. You would have been fine in Maine." Marko looked like he was ready to blow up. He loved Gemma. He still did. He kept a photograph of her always. And David was throwing her and his love for her in the garbage.

Dwayne capped Marko on the shoulder. "Lets just go, Marko, there's no use reasoning with him." It took him a minute, but the elder of the two with Paul's help got Marko out of there before he did something he regretted. Marko went off on his bike by himself, Paul staying behind to keep an eye out for Laddie and Star to make sure David did nothing stupid, and finally, Dwayne hopped on his motorcycle, heading in the direction of Sophie's house.

Time to make things right again.


	17. Author's Note

Ok guys, this is a quick authors note before I give you guys what I've been working on for the past couple days.

The reason why I haven't been updating in forever is because I have been in the hospital for the past few months. I have cystic fibrosis, and I almost died before I was admitted because too much mucus got in my left lung and it began to fail. So, I was put on life support for two weeks until my new lung came in for transfer and I got my surgery done and everything.

The downside is that I had to stay in the hospital under close watch and conditions for the next couple months to make sure that my new lung and I got along together and I didn't reject it, but now that I've been released I'm back and better than ever and sooooo ready to get back to basics and start this story up again.

I'm really sorry for being out for so long! Leave me a comment saying what type of story you think I should do next? Another Lost Boys fanfiction? Maybe The Breakfast Club? Grease? Teen Wolf? Vampire Diaries? I'm up for any challenge you guys have got so let me know and I'll write it down. I'll probably be working on two or three stories at one time on my Quotev Account and my Wattpad account for each. So, let me know!

My other accounts will be listed in my About Me in my profile :)


	18. Chapter 16

I woke up to the sound of knocking at my door, and I groaned, pulling the blanket up and over my head. "It's me." Oh great. The joy of speaking to my lovely older brother Michael. The door opened and the sound of his boots hit my wooden floor. He ripped the blankets off of my head and sat me up. "Michael stop, my head hurts - I'm hungover, I just want to sleep!" I snapped at him, lying, pushing away from him and sitting back against my headboard.

I peered my eyes open to see that the sun was almost gone, only a small sliver of light went through my closed curtains. "Why did you lie to me?" Michael asked, and I furrowed my brows. "What are you talking about?" My voice was tired and cracked with every word. "First you tell me you almost got into a fight with some girl on the boardwalk - you and I both know you've never been in a fight in your life. Then you tell mom that you got drunk last night and threw up in the sink - when I know that whatever the hell is in the sink is not alcohol."

I bit the inside of my cheek. "And how exactly is it that you would know, Michael? Huh? What, did you go in there and get hit by a huge wave of the inside of my body instead of alcohol?" I was getting defensive, and really angry, really fast. I couldn't help it. It was like every emotion I ever had was amplified times ten. "What do you want from me, Michael?" I snapped and I could see it. Around the rims of his iris they were growing bloodshot and red. He blinked a few times, turning his head away and that's when I knew. That's why he seemed so different but the same all at once.

Michael was like me.

"I just want to know what happened to you last night, Sophie. You're different - it's like I don't even know who you are." He whispered, and I sighed. "Michael-" I began to protest but he shook his head, "Sophie, tell me what's going on!" He demanded and I flinched away at the loud noise. "It was Dwayne wasn't it. I'll kill him. Did he try to do anything-?" I cut him off as quick as I possibly could, "no! God, Michael - first mom, now you? Dwayne isn't at fault here!"

"You're hiding something from us and I wanna know what it is, Sophie!" He yelled, pushing himself off of my bed and started pacing. "There's nothing for me to hide, Michael - nothing is going on-" I spoke too soon. In through the window came Dwayne, who shoved Michael to the wall without a second thought. I let out a yelp, running to the two of them before Dwayne killed my brother or vice versa. "Stop- Dwayne, stop!"

"Oh look who's here, the Dracula has-been!" Michael snarked, though his replies were short lived as Dwayne wrapped his hand around Michael's throat. "I would shut up before I send that pretty boy head of yours spinning in a circle." Dwayne snapped back and I pulled at Dwayne's arm. "Stop, you're gonna kill him - stop!" I cried, and the door burst open to reveal my mother. I managed to pull Dwayne off of him and he was gone before I could blink.

"What on earth is going on in here?!" My mother questioned as Michael fell to the floor, clutching his throat. "Oh my god, Michael-" she gasped, running to his aid beside me. Together we helped to lift him up, but he shook both of us off. "I'm going out." He snarled, pushing past us and storming off down the stairs. "Michael- Michael!" I yelled after him.

He pulled on his boots and shrugged on his leather jacket. "Michael, Max will be over soon, I'd like you to meet him." My mother suggested, trying to get his mind off of whatever was making him so upset. "Not interested." He grabbed a lighter from off the counter, shoving it into his jacket pocket.

He ripped the front door open and was about to storm out when a figure behind the door stopped him. "Oh, my, you must be Michael." A soft voice said from behind the door, and Michael gave him a glare. "You must be Max." He stated as politely as he could, and I saw Max catch my gaze from over Michael's shoulder. "Well, Michael. You're the man of this house, and I'm not coming in until you invite me." Michael rolled his eyes, pushing past Max, making the poor man stumble. I groaned, face palming at my brothers indignant actions. I sighed, opening the door wider for Max to step through. "You can come in, I'm sorry about him. It's been a rather long day." I said.

Max smiled, stepping through the threshold and looked me over. "You look just like your mother. You have her generous nature as well; not many people nowadays do. No wonder my boy Dwayne likes you." Well that had caught me off guard. I furrowed my brows. "I beg your pardon-?" I didn't get to gain a response from him, as my mother had entered the room, looking for Michael but finding Max instead. The two greeted and he handed her the flowers he brought with him. I shut the door behind me just as Sam ran through with two other boys.

"Just in time for dinner, dweeb." I joked, ruffling Sam's hair and he pushed my hand away. "Can't talk, got to do a thing-" He didn't even look at me as he raced into the kitchen, the two boys carrying off behind him. Well that was odd. I blew an exaggerated sigh, running a hand through my hair as I entered the dining room. "Hey, mom?" I said, interrupting something she was saying. "Do you mind if I just eat later? My head is still killing me, I think I wanna go lay down." I explained and she shook her head. "I suppose... You'll be missing out on quite a meal though."

I nodded, "you can condemn me on what flavors I missed later." I joked, heading up the stairs. I walked into my bedroom, leaving the lights off. My sight in the dark had increased a little, and so I walked into my closet (pitch black, by the way) and pulled out a pair of yoga pants and a big t-shirt. I changed in my closet, coming out and crawling into bed. I sighed, today wasn't the best day I've had so far.  
Until a big, muscular arm wrapped around my torso and a familiar, deep voice spoke in my ear. "You kept me waiting long enough."


	19. Chapter 17

I bit my lip as Dwayne's voice filtered out into the air. It sounded so much different to me now, with my heightened hearing, and the power that was tying me to him made me feel much more than normal attraction. I turned around in his arms, peering into the darkness at his sculpted face. "Granted, you did attack my brother." I replied, and he sighed, "your brother was losing his temper and was getting a little more mouthy than I would have liked to witness."

I couldn't help but scoff, propping myself up to rest on my elbow. "He's my brother, Dwayne. Imagine if Laddie was in my shoes and you had no idea what had happened to him. Not a single clue in the world." I responded, and Dwayne sighed. "Alright, alright, I guess I can see where he was coming from." Dwayne said and I gulped at the reminder of the poor boy I shunned out of my life.

"How is he?" I asked tensely, looking down at him. I saw his eyes shift, glazing over a little bit and I knew his answer. I sighed, laying back down and curling up in a ball, my back to Dwayne. I felt horrible - think of the feeling you get when you accidentally kick a puppy. Now multiply that times a thousand. That was how I felt. Dwayne sighed, "Sophie-" he began, but I cut him off. "No, Dwayne, I feel awful. He couldn't help himself and I snapped on him."

Dwayne rubbed my back while I rode out my sobs, letting me cry into his chest and work through my emotions. I was angry about everything that had happened, about being played like a harp, about being turned against my will into something I used to think was just a creature your older brother would try to scare you with. I was sad because I let my mom down, I let my grandfather, my brothers, I let everyone down. I was happy to be alive, but all of the stress of what my life had started to cost was weighing me down like the Titanic.

Twenty minutes later, I was calm enough to carry on. "Can I ask you something?" I asked him, looking up from our adjusted position. I was laying with my head on his lap, while he sat up against the headboard. Dwayne nodded, "anything." He said, looking down at me as he wiped my dried tears away. I sniffed. "What was your life like before you were turned?" I asked and I could feel him tense up. Did I strike a nerve? I felt my heart beat increase in nervousness that I asked the wrong question, but all of it seemed to wash away as he ran a hand down my arm, curling it around my waist.

"Well," Dwayne sighed. "I was born around April, 1855. Into the Aska Tribe if I remember correctly," he added, running a hand through his hair. "My name was Dyami, meaning 'Eagle,' and I grew up just like any Native American boy, learning stories and legends, customs, and working on earning my place as a man in the tribe." He said, and I nodded, trying to picture him back then. "Of course, my hair was longer."

I giggled, shaking my head at him. "Keep going," I encouraged, lightly batting him on the shoulder. He chuckled, "well, our culture as far as marriage was a little like you would assume the English to be. Whoever was the best match for the Chief's daughter would be the one who would marry them and I was definitely at the top of the list. I didn't really love her, but I knew it would please my family and get us out of the poverty we were in at the bottom of the tribe. I was helping my mother, who was one of the apothecaries when he showed up." Dwayne said, his voice growing a little colder. "David slaughtered my entire tribe. Women, children, the warriors I stood by were now the ones I was going to have to bury."

I felt a gasp leave my lips. Why would David do such a thing? What quarrel did the two have that caused him to go on a major temper tantrum and kill so many innocent people. "Besides myself, he left my little brother Anaki alive only so he could translate back and forth. He had been playing with the English boys that would travel through our terrain." Dwayne's grip on my waist suddenly got a little harder, "he was Laddie's age. And once I had learned enough to understand, David killed him too."

That made my heart sink. I could feel the waves of upset crawling under his skin, only worsening the feeling that I got. I reached up and ran my thumb across his cheek, catching a small tear that had fallen. "Hey," I sat up, allowing him to pull me into his lap, and I shook my head. "The past can hurt, but everything that you have gone through makes you so much stronger for the future you have ahead." I told him, and he chuckled a little, pressing a kiss to my temple. "Now, what happened next?"

"David and I traveled for around two or three years, him continuously trying to persuade me to become like him. And it wasn't until I met his creator that I had conceded and said yes. His name was-" A loud banging on my door, followed by Sam's voice had interrupted him. " _Soph! Come downstairs, mom wants to talk to you!_ " Groaning, I pushed myself off of Dwayne and moved to get up when he grabbed my wrist. "You don't have to go, Sophie." He said, speaking quickly as he stood up. I furrowed my brows, "what are you-?" I began to ask when he cut me off.

"Sophie, run away with me."

 _ **A/N: *Slowly emerges from the shadows after not updating for forever* Heyyyyy how you doing?**_


	20. Chapter 18

Two days. Two long insufferable days I had lay in bed, moping about for the wrongs I'd done. I could still see his face, hear his broken voice, his expression of pure hurt and betrayal before he'd left me there. I barely slept, I could feel the pain from supressing my hunger get worse and worse, but I didn't care. I was like an emotionless zombie, only showing any form of feeling when I would cry for hours in the shower. It was like the events of what had happened between Dwayne and I were on repeat in my head twenty-four-seven.

 _"Dwayne, I-" he wouldn't let me finish, crossing the room to grab me in his arms and he embraced me tightly. "Just you and me, Sophie, come on, think about it," He began,_ _"we wouldn't have to worry about parents or about David or your brothers, no one! It'd be just us!" He said, pulling back to look at me. "Just us." He breathed._

 _Something about this didn't seem right. It wasn't that I didn't want to, I could feel the sire bond between the two of us pushing me, urging me to say yes. But I had a life to think about: my human one. "Dwayne..." I whispered, "I can't just drop everything and leave..." I could see his hopeful expression shift to one of annoyance. "What are you talking about, Sophie? You're changing! You're not the same girl you were before-"_

 _"That doesn't change the fact that I have a family to worry about, Dwayne!" I fired back, now completely pissed off. He scoffed, looking down at me. "You do realize that you will have to say goodbye to them, right? Sooner is better than later." He retorted. "What are you going to do when they start to notice? When Sam finally towers over you at twenty-five and you're still fifteen?" I shook my head at him. "Shut up, Dwayne." I growled._

 _"When Michael sees your ninth high school graduation?"_

 _"Shut_ _ **up**_ _!"_

 _"When you have to bury your mother?"_

 _"SHUT UP!"_

 _It was the last straw, and I had had it. My blood was boiling, my face was red, I was so angry that I hadn't thought before I spoke, and I regretted the words the moment they came out of my big mouth._

 _"Well maybe it's not such a big deal to you, Dwayne, because you didn't have to say goodbye to your family._ _ **David**_ _did it_ _ **for**_ _you when he_ _ **killed**_ _yours!"_

Never had I ever been so cruel. It didn't feel good either, it felt like a thousand massive paper cuts, covering my tongue as punishment. It felt like a hundred thousand punches to the gut. it felt like a million stakes straight through my heart. All at once. I didn't think he would ever come back or ever forgive me, and I didn't blame him. I was a horrible sire, and I betrayed him.

It was around three in the afternoon when banging sounded on my bedroom door. It was frantic, followed by the sound of Michael's voice. "Sophie- Soph, let us in!" He cried out, and he sounded exhausted. I pulled myself up from my bed, throwing my hair up into a messy bun on top of my head before I opened the door that Michael was practically breaking down.

He ran inside, Sam following him before the two of them shut the door tightly, locking it. "Mike, Sam, what's going on, it's like noon thirty-" I began to complain when they silenced me with worried looks. "Sophie, you've gotta help us!" Sam begged. "Help you with what? What's going on?" I questioned, partially with a yawn. Sam and Michael shared glances before Sam let out a groan. "How can you expect her to help if you don't... you know... tell her!"

"Sam, it's not so easy-" Michael began before Sam rolled his eyes and interrupted him. "Michael's a vampire, so are all those creepy dudes on motorcycles and Star and Laddie." He explained, Michael exclaiming curses at our little brother and I furrowed my brows. "You're one too? Half, I mean?" I asked and the two of them looked at me incredulously. I bit down hard on my tongue as I realized what the hell I'd just done.

Well, cat's out of the bag now.


	21. Chapter 19

"So these are the two bloodsuckers?"  
I cringed as I was scrutinized by Sam's 'backup' as he called it. They were the Frog Brothers, Edgar and Alan, Michael and I sat next to each other on his bed, my knees curled up to my chest to try and cope with the stomach pains I was getting from not feeding. "I find that term rather offensive considering we haven't even fed off of anyone yet." I mumbled into my knees. Alan curled his upper lip at me, a slight growl escaping his lips. "Doesn't make you any less of a monster than the ones who turned you." He stated coldly, his voice like gravel as he pointed a wooden stake at me.  
Sam took the stake from Alan, "dude, that's my sister." He scoffed, as if to ask him between the lines 'what the hell do you think you're doing? He threw down the stake, sighing. "Ok, so we know that David was the one who turned Michael." Edgar started, pointing to my brother and his finger was soon pointed at me. "But the question is who turned you?" He finished, and I gulped as all eyes were on me.  
"Look," I stood up, getting wary glances as both the Frog Brothers jumped into a ready position; and I raised my hands up to show that I wasn't trying to hurt anyone. "We don't need to know who turned who, we need to know who the head vampire is." I pointed out, not making eye contact with my brothers. Edgar narrowed his eyes, but then widened them as realization hit him, "you're protecting one of them." He said quietly, and Alan shook his head, "we should just stake her right now-!" He started, grabbing a stake and leaping at me. Both Sam and Michael moved to create a wall between me and him, a small yelp of fear leaving my lips and I staggered back.  
"The next time you try to hurt her, either of you," Michael growled, "you're gonna find yourselves the ones that turn me full blooded." He stated, and the Frog Brothers snarled at him. "The next time you try to stop us," Edgar stated, "you're gonna find yourself on the end of the stake." Sam pushed the two unlike parties apart, Michael coming to stand by me while Sam stood in the middle. "We just need to formulate a goddamn plan here not gripe over stuff that shouldn't even exist!" He yelled.  
Sam looked to our older brother, "Michael, do you remember how to get to the lair?" He asked, and the latter nodded. "Good. We take Grandpa's car, we go to the lair, we get Star and Laddie, and we get the hell out." He stated and when I heard Laddie's name, my blood ran cold. I hadn't seen Laddie since the night he drained me. I still couldn't get over how cruel I was to him, how cruel I was to Dwayne. If we got caught, he'd probably pin my head on a spear."It's daytime - they're at their most vulnerable! I say we stake them-" Alan interjected.  
"Rescue first, stake later. Lets go, we don't have a lot of time." Michael said, grabbing my wrist and leading me out of the bedroom first, the three vampire-hunting Stooges following in suit behind us. Michael grabbed Grandpa's keys from the ring next to the garage door, all of us piling in before we sped off. I was in the back with Alan and Sam, while Edgar rode in front for 'patrol' reasons. Honestly I think he just wanted shotgun.  
Immediately when the sun hit me, I realized just how tired I was. The beading light hiting me in the face, making my skin feel like a crumpled up piece of paper that you rolled back out to try to take out the creases. I blocked the sun with my arm, deciding that wearing a canary colored long sleeve v-neck top with black jeans wasn't the best suit for riding in a convertable vehicle. I had almost gone to sleep from pure exhaustion, but the car had finally stopped next to the edge of a cliff.  
When everything came into focus and I peered into the bright light, I hopped out of the car on wobbly legs. Dirt covered my already scuffed-to-hell converse, and Michael took my upper arm to push me back into the car. "Hell no, you're not going in there!" He shook his head, and I sighed, "Michael, I'm not letting you go in there without a look out. If you didn't want me to go in, you shuoldn't have brought me. If we go down, we go down together." I told him thoroughly, pulling my arm from his grip and heading down, following my younger brother and his companions.  
It was dark and damp, but I still could see where I was going without tripping with my heightened sight. I rubbed my clothed arms, a chill sweeping in as I caught wind of Dwayne's scent, the scent so familiar yet so foreign that it made me dizzy. I suppressed a yelp of surprise when a fire erupted to my left, seeing the Frog Brothers, Sam, and Michael lighting up the garbage cans that were littered around the room.  
"Remember the plan, rescue first, stake later." Michael told us, and I followed slowly behind him, as to not make much noise, to where Star was sleeping on one bed - however when I looked to my right, I saw another bed that was unoccupied. "Mike-" a hand was clamped over my mouth and I was dragged back before my brother could hear me into a dark crevace somewhere in the cavern. "Don't scream!" A voice warned quietly, and I felt shivers run down my spine as I realized who it was.  
All my fear from the night I was turned was brought back, as I was turned around and I peered through the dark to see Laddie looking up at me regretfully. "Before you yell and tell me you never want to see me again, I want you to know how sorry I am for what I did to you..." His voice was full of sadness, and he reached out to touch my stomach, where the shell had been buried. When he saw I flinched, however didn't move away, his small child fingers brushed against the area over my shirt. "If it could have been anyone else, you would still be human." He promised, and I sighed, opening my mouth to say something when Michael began to call out my name. "All the others think you're still a halfling. We need to get you out of here." I told him, grabbing his hand and pulling him along with me. Laddie shook his head, "Sophie, I can't - you know I can't!" He nearly exclaimed, and I leaned down to his level. "I have a plan, just go with it. I won't let you get hurt." I swore, and he was wary as he debated over it for a few moments before he finally caved and nodded.  
I pulled him over to where the second bed was, noticing Star and Michael were both gone. I pulled the thick comforters off of both beds, holding them up to the fire to see that almost no light shone through. "I'm gonna put these over you and carry you out, ok?" I told him, and he nodded, allowing me to drape both of the thick, heavy blankets over him. I picked him up, heaving his heavy covered body into my arms and racing out of there as fast as I could.  
It was a hard process, but eventually I managed to get up the stairs with a still living Laddie. I put him in the back seat where Star and Michael were passed out, and I placed Laddie in the front seat so I could shift them around. I left Michael sitting on the car floor, pushing Star up from where she was slouched to the far left of the back seat. I moved Laddie to the back seat, "it's hot under here!" He groaned, and I was about to reply when all of a sudden I heard Sam and the Frog Brothers scream about starting the car.  
"Don't worry, Laddie, we're gonna get you somewhere safe. I promise."

A/N: Sorry, no Dwayne in this chapter. But next chapter fo-sho! AND OMG YOU GUYS THE STORY IS ALMOST OVER! 2-3 more chapters! I'M SO HAPPY AND PROUD OF YOU GUYS FOR STICKING WITH ME EVEN THOUGH I HAVEN'T BEEN ON AS MUCH IF YOU WANT TO KNOW THE REASON WHY YOU CAN PM ME AND I CAN SHARE IT WITH YOU I LOVE YOU GUYS OK BUH-BYE!


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